Improvement in harrows



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ELISHA WHISSON, 0F SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEMENT IN HARROWS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N0. 155,688, dated October6, 1874; application tiled July 15,1874.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ELIsHA- WHrssoN, of Springfield, in the county ofSangamon and State of Illinois, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Barrows; and I do hereby declare that the following is afull and exact description of the same, referencer being had to theaccompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

The object I have in view is an improvement in the construction ofadjustable harrows, whereby the same may be more conveniently andeectively used; and my invention therein consists in the combination oftwo short beamshaving shovels at their rear ends and guiding-handleswith an expansible harrow, as is more fully hereinafter explained.

To enable those skilled in the art to make and use my invention, Iproceed to describe the same in connection with the drawings, in which-Figure l is a perspective view of my invention; Fig. 2, detail view ofone of the short beams; Fig. 3, view oi' adjusting-rod.

In the drawings, A, B, C, and D represent the four principal pieces orbeams of the frame ofthe harrow. An eyebolt is driven in one end of eachof the pieces A, B, C, and D, and secured by a nut. These pieces A and Bare then connected together in pairs by placing the eye of one bolt overthat of the other, and passing a bolt through them, said bolt beingsecured by a nut, thus forming a hinge. The adjacent ends of the piecesnear the hinges are rounded oft to allow the other ends to be spreadapart or brought together. The pieces G and D are similarly connected bya hinge, b, and one triangle thus formed is placed within the other. Allfour pieces, A, B, C, and D, are connected together by bars c c and d d,the bars c c extending obliquely from the pieces C and D, respectively,near the apex of the triangle formed to the pieces A and B,respectively, and the bars d d extending from about the middle pointofthe pieces C and D, respectively, straight to the pieces A and B,respectively. These-bars are pivoted ateach end to allow for the play ofthe hinges, and

c, in the pieces A and B, serves also to secure the draft-hooks e e, towhich gearing for hauling is attached. An adjustable sliding rod, E,`extends from the piece C to the piece D. This rod E consists of twoparts, f and f1, and a clamp, f2. Each of the parts consists of a rodhaving a loop at one end and an eyeat the other end. These rods are puttogether by passing each, respectively, through the loop of the other.It will be seen by this means a rod is produced which may be lengthenedor shortened. In the space which is left between the parts f and fl isplaced a clamp, f2, by means of which the rod E is held rigidly wheninally adjusted. Straps g pass around the pieces C and D at about theirmiddle points.

The ends of the straps project inwardly and form lugs, in whichhinge-pieces g1 are pivoted vertically. Two short frame pieces or beams,F and G, having beveled ends provided with lugs g2, are pivotedhorizontally to the hingepieces g1. It will be seen, therefore, thepieces F and G may be swung vertically and horizontally at the sametime. From the rear lower face of each of the pieces F and G extends ashovel, H, which consists of a piece of plate metal placed obliquelyacross the bottom face ofthe piece, having its shank pass up through thesame, whereit is held by a nut, thus presenting an oblique surfaceftothe kground through which it passes, facing inwardly or outwardly, asdesired. Its lower end is beveled from the front upward to the rear,randthe point thus termed at the intersection of the front and bottom edgesis bent forward a little. The peculiar shape makes a sort of scoop orshovel out of it, while its front and bottom edge being sharp, it cutsreadilyY through the ground. The handles I rise obliquely toward therear and exterior of the machine from the front part of each of thepieces or beams F and G, to which they are securely bolted. Metalsupports h extend from about the middle points ot' these handles to theends of the pieces F and G and the handles I, so that the verticalmotion of the pieces F and G is somewhat limited. The whole frame ot'the harrow is provided with a sufficient number of teeth, except at theimmediate fronts, of the ordinary size and form.

It will be seen by the arrangement just deu the shovels either turn theearth upon the plants or away from them, as desired. The

advantage, then, of the short beams to which the handles are attachedis, that however wide or narrow the harrow may be made in use, thedistance of the shovels apart is under the control of the farmer, whomay thus run either or both of his shovels as close to the plants as hechooses, and raise either one of them or swing it to one side to avoidany obstacle. He can always, by exerting a pressure, cause the shovelsto penetrate ,the ground deeply or not at his will.

Having thus described my invention, its mode of use, and sonne of itsadvantages, what I claim as new therein, and desire to secure by LettersPatent, is

In combination with the expansible harrow A B C D E d, the short beams Fand G, having shovels at their rear ends and guidinghandles, and eachpivoted with a universal joint to the beams C D at or near the centerthereof, substantially as described and shown.

This specification signed and witnessed this 20th day of June, 1874.

nLisHA wHIssoN.

Witnesses SAML. D. ScHoLEs, T. C. MATHER.

